Where Are They Now? Checking In On Four Cardiovascular Start-Ups

It's no secret increasing generic competition and regulatory oversight, combined with the financial challenges of developing a primary care drug, make cardiovascular a tough place for venture-backed biotechs. START-UP takes the pulse of four previously profiled cardiovascular companies -- arca Biopharma, Celladon, NovaCardia and Portola Pharmaceuticals, -- to see what lessons they've learned.

Cardiovascular drug development is not for the faint of heart – especially if you are a small venture-backed start-up. While revenues for current CV drugs exceed $90 billion, there's no question the market is downsizing, as Big Pharma pulls away from the space, frustrated by the increasingly high regulatory hurdles – and costs – associated with cardiovascular drug development in what is increasingly a generic world. Caught in the middle of this wholesale transition are smaller venture-backed outlets formed five to seven years ago, when the words "primary care" held a positive connotation and significant financing for clinical trials was comparatively easier to obtain.

Big Pharma's interest in cardiovascular dealmaking began to shift in late 2006, when Pfizer Inc.'s late-stage follow-on to Lipitor...

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